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John Hardin High School and East Hardin Middle School recognized

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Hardin County Schools is celebrating after two of the district’s schools received national recognition.

According to HCS, John Hardin High School was one of 31 Kentucky high schools that received the College Success Award from GreatSchools.org. The award recognizes public high schools that excel at preparing students to enroll and succeed in college.

“We are tremendously proud of everyone in the Bulldog family,” said HCS Community Relations Specialist John Wright. “Their staff and students have worked hard to reach success even after their time at John Hardin is complete. This validates that their strategies are working and that John Hardin High School is a great place to grow, learn, and prepare for life after graduation.”

Meanwhile, East Hardin Middle School was named a Spotlight School by the New Tech Network. Spotlight Schools implement the best practices in one or more NTN focus areas: college and career-ready outcomes, supportive and inclusive culture, meaningful and equitable instruction, and purposeful assessment. East Hardin was recognized for their project-based learning initiatives.

“Project-based learning initiatives do a wonderful job of enforcing the importance of responsibility, teamwork, and respect, and that’s the way life is out in the real world after they graduate, so this is just another factor in us preparing students for life after graduation,” Wright said.

Learn more about educational efforts across the school district at the Hardin County Schools website.

Radcliff council approves garbage franchise, reviews employee health insurance bids

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The Radcliff City Council met for their second meeting of the month Tuesday.

Radcliff Chief Financial Officer Chance Fox discussed the city’s bidding for a new employee healthcare insurance provider. Mayor JJ Duvall said the city had claims they have not normally had this year, so current provider UnitedHealthcare informed the city rates would be increasing. Fox said the city decided to shop around to reduce the financial impact.

“There will be some impact to the budget,” Fox said. “I don’t think it would be a major impact to the budget, but it’s something that, because the council obviously approves the budget, something you need to be aware of, and we’re looking at a six month window since we’re coming up on the second half of the budget, and that’s when the policy would renew, and then any additional consideration the city might have we would just allocate and blend into the 2025-2026 budget.”

The city is recommending coverage from Anthem, which would carry a rate increase of about 22.2 percent from current rates but would save about $68,000 from the proposed renewal with United. The council will discuss the proposed bid at their next meeting.

The council approved awarding the city’s solid waste franchise to Green River Waste. Members of the council said in addition to a lower rate, they appreciated the presence of a local office that Green River included in the bid. Mayor Duvall said as the franchise has been held by Waste Management for more than two decades, residents should anticipate a transition period.

“Anyone that thinks it’s going to be a 100 percent transition day one is probably not a realistic view,” Duvall said. “I know the garbage companies will say ‘yeah, we can make it happen,’ and I hope you do, but at the end of the day, I think there’s going to be hiccups. There’s going to be days that people are used to pulling their dumpster or their cans out on Monday, and now it’s on Thursday, and so there’s going to be some hiccups.”

In other meeting news, the council approved an ordinance consolidating the city’s property tax rates and collection procedures into one ordinance on its second reading. The council also approved a zoning change for 408 Shelby Avenue in the Skyview Estates subdivision from R-6 to R-4.

The Radcliff City Council will next meet December 9.

Bullitt County man indicted on federal firearms charges

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A Bullitt County man was indicted earlier this month on federal firearms charges. 

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky says on November 5 a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Jason Argenbright of Lebanon Junction with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon and Possession of an Unregistered Firearm.

According to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office this week, Argenbright was arrested on August 20 after he was found to be in possession of a .223 caliber rifle that was equipped with a silencer. The rifle was not registered to Argenbright in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. Argenbright was prohibited from possessing firearms because of three previous convictions in Bullitt County.

The case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives along with the Bullitt County Sheriff’s Office. The case is part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods program.

Argenbright made his initial court appearance on November 13. He is currently lodged in the Oldham County Detention Center pending trial. Argenbright faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted.

E-Town council votes to decline solar farm annexation request

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The Elizabethtown City Council met for their second meeting of the month Monday.

The council voted to decline the annexation request from seven property owners along Hayden Church and Cecilia roads that would be leasing their property to Lightsource BP for a solar farm. 

“The city council emphasizes the administrative staff finding that the large-scale solar farm proposed is not urban in character and is not suitable for development for urban purposes without unreasonable delay,” said City Attorney Ken Howard, reading from the municipal order approved by the council to decline the request. “This finding is further supported by Telesto’s memorandum, indicating the need for minimal municipal services for the project.”

The order “does not express an opinion on the viability or suitability of a large-scale solar farm in the unincorporated areas of Hardin County.”

The council also approved municipal orders that approved a contract with Dirt Works Unlimited for about $214,000 for the Keeneland Drive ditch stormwater design project, and a change order with Triumph Landscape Construction Inc. for about $133,000 for the North Main Street sidewalk project. 

Ordinances approving changes to the city’s zoning ordinance regarding medical cannabis operations and offsite directional signs were passed on their second readings. The first reading was held on two zoning amendments as well as an amendment to the city’s Alcohol Beverage Control ordinance.

“It reestablishes annual licensing fees, reaffirms times of sale, added language for the Entertainment Destination Center License and ordinance, clarified language and enforcement and penalties, and reestablishes procedures for enforcement of the ordinance,” Howard said, reading from the ordinance

The full text of the ordinances and municipal orders can be obtained by contacting the city clerk’s office.

The Elizabethtown City Council will next meet December 2.

Grayson County receives Kentucky Trail Town designation

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State and local officials were on hand at Logsdon Valley Park Monday as Grayson County was declared the 30th official Kentucky Trail Town.

The Kentucky Tourism, Arts, and Heritage Cabinet says the Trail Town program recognizes a community’s commitment to sharing their areas outdoor opportunities, culture, histories, and stories while serving as an official gateway to the state’s outdoor offerings.

Leitchfield Mayor Harold Miller said the designation is a great honor.

“It recognizes our dedication to preserving our natural beauty here in the county and it promotes outdoor recreation for our citizens,” Miller said. “This distinction celebrates our ongoing effort to welcome visitors, to enhance our quality of life, and to showcase our hospitality.”

Miller and Grayson County Judge/Executive Kevin Henderson praised the seven-years-long effort that Grayson County Tourism and the Public Trails Association of Grayson County put into bringing about the designation. 

Kentucky State Parks Director of Interpretation and Engagement Seth Wheat said Grayson County fits well into the Trail Town program’s two-pronged goal of connecting people to outdoor spaces, such as Nolin Lake State Park and Rough River Dam State Resort Park, as well as improving the health of Kentuckians.

“This isn’t a silver bullet,” Wheat said. “It’s not a magic bullet, but what it’ll do is it’ll encourage people to get out and move more, and that doesn’t just help our physical health. It helps our mental health, our social health, more and more studies are showing why these kinds of activities are important, and they’re prescribing certain amounts of time for us to be outdoors. Spend 20 minutes a day, three days a week outdoors in a park, just like this beautiful park we have here, which is located right in town.”

Find more information on the Trail Towns program at kentuckytourism.com.